Obama hails 'new beginning' for Yemen Many Yemenis are celebrating the end of the former regime Continue reading the main story
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US President Barack Obama has hailed the swearing in of a new president in Yemen as a "new beginning" for the country.

Mr Obama said the US would be "a steadfast partner to Yemen" in its transition to democracy.

He also offered US condolences for the deaths of 26 people in a car bombing in Yemen's southern Hadramawt province.

The attack came hours after Yemen's new President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi was sworn in, in the capital Sanaa.

Mr Hadi has replaced Ali Abdullah Saleh, who resigned after months of protest.

"Under President Hadi's leadership, Yemen has the potential to serve as a model for how peaceful transitions can occur when people resist violence and unite under a common cause," Mr Obama said.

"This week, millions of Yemenis voted for a new president and the beginning of a promising new chapter in Yemen's history.

"The Yemeni people have achieved a new beginning for their country, but much work lies ahead."

He added: "I told President Hadi that the United States will stand with the people of Yemen as they continue their efforts to forge a brighter future for their country."

Yemen back in our good graces...U.S. preparing to restart military aid to Yemen10 Mar.`12 WASHINGTON (AP)  The Pentagon is planning to restart programs that would fund military training and equipment in Yemen, nearly a year after they were shut down because of escalating chaos in the embattled country.

While no agreements have been cemented, U.S. defense officials said as much as $75 million in military assistance could begin to flow later this year. The officials said the Pentagon and State Department are putting together a letter to send to Congress to request the aid be restarted. The plan is in line with the Obama administration's intention to provide significant security and civilian aid to Yemen in 2012-13 as long as the Middle Eastern country continues to move toward a new government and funding is kept out of the hands of insurgents. One senior military official said discussions have begun over how best the United States can help Yemen, which is putting a new U.S.-backed government in place. The official said it may be difficult to relaunch the counterterrorism training that was suspended about a year ago because Yemeni forces are engaged in battle with the al-Qaida-linked insurgency.

Instead, the training program could shift to focus less on fighting tactics and more on how to plan combat operations and strategize against the enemy. Officials spoke on condition of anonymity because no final decisions have been made. Yearlong protests across Yemen, coupled with pressure from the U.S., led to the ouster of longtime Yemeni ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh. U.S. leaders have said they believe that newly inaugurated Yemeni president, Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, will be a good partner to the U.S. The renewed effort come as the threat from al-Qaida in the Arab Peninsula also goes through its own transition. While often described as the top terror threat for strikes inside the U.S., the group hasn't surfaced as a key player in any domestic threats for more than a year.

The killing in a U.S. drone strike last fall of Anwar al-Awlaki, the U.S.-born radical militant cleric, has set back the group's terror efforts outside Yemen. Al-Awlaki has been linked to the planning and execution of several terror attacks targeting U.S. and Western interests, including the attempt to take down a Detroit-bound airliner in 2009 and the plot to bomb cargo planes in 2010. But it's hard to tell how long the lull may last. "What we don't necessarily know is are they going to be focusing much more on Yemen, or is it a short term thing, to be able to build up time and capacity to be able to strike at a far enemy," said Frank Cilluffo, director of a homeland security studies program at George Washington University who served as White House domestic security adviser to President George W. Bush.

Yemen Suicide Blast Kills 63...Scores of Yemeni Soldiers Killed in Bomb AttackMay 21, 2012 - Yemeni officials said a suicide bomber has killed at least 96 soldiers and wounded more than 200 during a military parade rehearsal in the capital Sana'a.

Officials said the bomber was dressed in a military uniform and detonated his explosives while hundreds of soldiers were around him. Yemen's defense minister was at Monday's rehearsal but was unharmed. The soldiers were preparing for a parade on Tuesday to mark the unification of Yemen's north and south. Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi was due to attend the parade. Reports by Yemen's state television showed dozens of soldiers sprawled on the ground. At a nearby military hospital, doctors worked to save badly wounded soldiers.

Al-Qaida threat

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. But it coincides with a U.S.-backed Yemeni government offensive against al-Qaida militants who seized parts of the country's south last year as it was engulfed in a popular uprising against then-president Ali Abdullah Saleh. Mr. Hadi, who succeeded Mr. Saleh in February, has vowed to fight the growing presence of the terrorist network's regional affiliate, al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula. Economist Intelligence Unit Middle East analyst Robert Powell said al-Qaida has been trying to organize itself in Sana'a for a long time and its activities have usually been disrupted.

Powell said the symbolism and substantial casualties from the attack on the military parade rehearsal indicate that al-Qaida has a greater reach inside Yemen than previously known. Stephen Steinbeiser, who heads the American Institute for Yemeni Studies, said the blast struck close to the nerve center of power in the country. "I'm hearing it was a bomber who was dressed like a soldier and who was basically able to infiltrate the central security forces whose job it is to fight al-Qaida and they did this in the heart of the capital at the main parade grounds while the minister of defense was observing, right next to the presidential compound," Steinbeiser said. "This sends a very, very strong message."

Yemeni TV reported that President Hadi replaced several top security officials after Monday's bomb attack. In a recent video message, al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri had urged Yemenis to fight their new president, whom he called a U.S. agent. Analyst Steinbeiser said the Yemeni government appears to have made major inroads against al-Qaida in recent days, but that this is the kind of war which is very difficult to assess in traditional terms. Many Yemenis, he said, oppose al-Qaida, but months of economic and political turmoil make it easier to recruit for their militant, extremist ideology.

Al-Qaida says a suicide bomber's attack in Yemen that killed at least 96 troops and wounded more than 200 on Monday was revenge for what it called a U.S.-backed war on its followers. Yemeni officials say a suspected rogue soldier detonated the explosives as hundreds of fellow troops were lining up for a military parade rehearsal in the capital Sana'a. The soldiers were preparing for a parade on Tuesday to mark the unification of Yemen's north and south. Al-Qaida's Yemen-based affiliate said the attack was aimed at top Yemeni commanders. It came during a U.S.-backed Yemeni government offensive against militants who seized southern regions last year as the country was engulfed in an uprising against then-president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon strongly condemned Monday's bombing, saying perpetrators of the terrorist attack must be held accountable. He called on all people in Yemen to reject the use of violence and fully implement a political transition agreement that saw Mr. Saleh step down in February after 33 years of autocratic rule. Yemen's defense minister and chief of staff both were at the Sana'a rehearsal but were unharmed. Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula said the defense minister was a target of the bombing and warned of more attacks in the government offensive does not stop.

Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, who succeeded Mr. Saleh, responded to the bombing by vowing to press on with the fight against al-Qaida. He also dismissed two senior Yemeni military commanders who were allies of his predecessor. Mr. Hadi has promised to restructure the military and purge it of Saleh relatives and loyalists suspected of blocking reforms. Economist Intelligence Unit Middle East analyst Robert Powell told VOA that al-Qaida has been trying to organize itself in Sana'a for a long time and its activities have usually been disrupted. He said the symbolism and substantial casualties from the attack on the military parade rehearsal indicate that al-Qaida has a greater reach inside Yemen than previously known.

So Al-queda is attacking Yemen while Yemen transitions to a democracy and the GOP thinks its bad to help the country defend itself from terrorists&#8230; Jesus
Seems the only country we can help defend is Israel of which has numerous times whipped out half of the Arab worlds military and could do so again in a blink of an eye

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